Yankees Feared Aaron Judge Would Be Out for Months with Rib Injury

Yankees slugger Aaron Judge's "unique" rib injury reportedly would have sidelined him for at least the first couple months of the season, had it started on time.

General manager Brian Cashman recently suggested he assumed Judge would be out at least into June, according to the New York Post, even though Judge said he was hoping to be back for Opening Day on March 26.

"When it happened, I always felt we wouldn’t see Judge more likely til the summertime,” Cashman reportedly said on a fundraiser conference call.

Judge was forced to miss time early in Spring Training with what was later diagnosed as a rib fracture and punctured lung.

It was later revealed Judge had originally gotten hurt diving for a ball late last season, and the injuries were slow to heal while going undetected over the offseason.

Cashman said Judge's injury was "extremely challenging to diagnose" because of its awkward location near his shoulder, the Post report said, but several recent exams have indicated improvement.

“We’ll continue that process that will hopefully continue to show that expected healing going forward, and once we resume play we’re excited to believe he’ll join us at full capacity,’’ Cashman said. “He wants to play as much as anybody.”

Cashman also said he expects outfielder Aaron Hicks and pitcher James Paxton to be ready if baseball should resume in June or July after it was suspended by the coronavirus crisis, as has been widely reported in recent days.